Seriously, this is a crappy way to start the weekend break.
I'm not at all surprised I'm kinda sad about this one: Gary Coleman DEAD: 'Diff'rent Strokes' Actor Dies In Utah, Wife Shannon Price At His Side
I don't mind at all that I'm showing my age on this one and Different Stroke reruns and the later first run episodes pretty much defined my childhood . . . Coleman was a pioneering child actor of color on Primetime TV and one of the first to help put forth the notion that minority children of color were capable of carrying a show all on their own. Before him there was NOBODY. At least nobody in the role of a precocious young person that was often smarter than some old, rich white dude.
Nancy Reagan delivered her "Just Say No" message directly to him in order to gain traction with her campaign that was dead in the water without the help of the young actor.
There were allegations that his parents stole from him, he never found another great role and his adult life was arduous. Yet his body of work is more widely appreciated than some of his generations greatest scholars and he was infinitely more entertaining.
Nothing is going to be the same again.
Goodbye Gary.
What about Buckwheat? I rest my case.
ReplyDeleteBuckwheat wasn't smarter than anybody. Gary was.
ReplyDeleteRest in Peace, little dude. :(
ReplyDeleteI knew he was in bad shape the past few days, and this is very sad. I grew up in the '80s and recall Diff'rent Strokes fondly. One episode that I remember vividly is when Muhammad Ali appeared on the show -- probably right around 1982 and around the time when he fought his last fight against Trevor Berbick. I found an old picture on the Net from that episode and posted it at the top of my blog upon seeing the sad news a little while ago (which I actually saw here first).
ReplyDeleteWhen I left the house today I was hoping so much not to come home to this news
ReplyDelete:(
Sigh. yeah. Just goes to show ya that you can get a lot of breaks, but still you suffer your chances like the rest of us. RIP, small dude and thanks for the smiles.
ReplyDeleteDead? what chew talkin about?
ReplyDeleteBegin the Calvin Williford jokes here ....
ReplyDeleteBuckwheat was a much better actor.
ReplyDeleteWhat was he, 42? Jeebus: Life really is . . . short. bwaaahh-ha-ha-haaaaa!!!!
ReplyDelete